[blackl78]

Please dont shoot me..... I have read and read on this and it gets overwhelming! I want to put a LSX in my 67 camaro. I did read where some one stated the LS1 & LS2 are obsolete, I think he was joking, but I was thinking of going 6.0 or larger anyway. I have a friend who owns a salvage yard and go's to 3 salvage auctions a week. He said to figure out what vehicle I want a engine from and he will buy one and let me take what i need from it. So...what vehicle? Car or truck/suv and what year? I want to be sure before I tell him what to look for. Probably should be something not to rare as it would take a while to find. Thanks!

[WES 1967 yenko clone]

I think if i had a choice,i would go with a ls3 out of the new camaro. Big power with cam change,drive by wire and a 6 speed. Wes

[greyGhost]

Is there a year Camaro that is better than another? Same w/ transmissions - which is a better year?

[nhra_crazy]

To bad your not closer to Pa.. Im pulling out my 430hp Ls1 out of my 98 camaro this weekend to install a new Ls6. Its for sale on another forum and sounds nuts.

[ace's68]

The ls1 in the camaro/fire-bird 01' and later use LS6 heads, cam and intake if I remember correctly.
ls1/ls6 are basically the same motor.
ls2 is the large ci found in older non Z-06 vettes and later GTO
I doubt an LS3 will be found in a salvage yard this early, but it is possible, I know of someone who found an LS3 with low miles from a wrecked vette, $6k.
LQ9 will probably be able to be found, they come in trucks (not the 5.3l's), you will need a new intake and probably have to switch to an Ls bracket system to fit in the camaro, a guy down the street from me is doing the Lq9 in a '69.
An LS1 with a cam, headers, intake, a good tune will yield 390rwhp, my cousin's 01' Z/28 did 390+ at the wheels and runs consistent 11.20's, decent mpg.

[Z06vette]

I think the best bang for the buck would be A complete pullout LS1/6spd from an F body. 01 and later uses LS6 intake but not the cam or heads. All the accessories will fit, and you have the harness, computer, fans, driveshaft, console, etc. 400 to the rear wheels is very respectable. Traction is limited without a drag radial or a huge rear tire. Our cars are light and you dont need to make 500rwhp to be quick. The new camar weighs almost 4000lbs. All the LSx motors are great. The truck 6.0's are cheap and make awesome power with cam only. I just recommemded the F body in your situation because your friend can get you the whole car. Let us know which way you go!
Scott

[Blown budget]

I was told that I have an LS3. Is there a way to tell by looking at something on it. It has the 24 wheel.

[blackl78]

Originally Posted by Z06vette

I think the best bang for the buck would be A complete pullout LS1/6spd from an F body. 01 and later uses LS6 intake but not the cam or heads. All the accessories will fit, and you have the harness, computer, fans, driveshaft, console, etc. 400 to the rear wheels is very respectable. Traction is limited without a drag radial or a huge rear tire. Our cars are light and you dont need to make 500rwhp to be quick. The new camar weighs almost 4000lbs. All the LSx motors are great. The truck 6.0's are cheap and make awesome power with cam only. I just recommemded the F body in your situation because your friend can get you the whole car. Let us know which way you go!
Scott

He said he doesnt run across to many of the LS1 camaro and TA's anymore??

Here's the deal....my salvage yard buddy will probably come very close to just giving me the motor and make his money back parting the rest of the vehicle. Im sure he is not going to buy me a Z06 to pull the motor from, but probably just about anything else. So I want to get the next best thing, maybe something I can later upgrade to the Z06 specs or maybe even better???

I have one shot to basically get a free motor, I want to choose wisely

So for you who actually know something about these motors.....Help me choose please!!

[ace's68]

Originally Posted by blackl78

He said he doesnt run across to many of the LS1 camaro and TA's anymore??

Here's the deal....my salvage yard buddy will probably come very close to just giving me the motor and make his money back parting the rest of the vehicle. Im sure he is not going to buy me a Z06 to pull the motor from, but probably just about anything else. So I want to get the next best thing, maybe something I can later upgrade to the Z06 specs or maybe even better???

I have one shot to basically get a free motor, I want to choose wisely

So for you who actually know something about these motors.....Help me choose please!!

The next best thing would be a LS2 out of a GTO, I agree with finding an F-body drive line, you won't really have to mod anything.
You can't upgrade to Z-06 specs, the Z-06 is a 427ci LS7, that uses an entirely different block, cam pistons, and crank, not to mention dry sump oiling.
If you can find an LS3, go for it.
The LQ-truck motors have better cylinder heads than the LS1, if you do end up with an LS1, you can find LQ heads DIRT cheap, add a cam, fast or weiand intake, maybe some injectors, tune, that right there is over 400rwph, more like 450.
The reason I say try to find a pontiac LS2 is because I have heard over and over again that pontiac motors made more hp from the factory than chevrolet due to the way they were tuned, if you are going to modify adn re-tune the motor, this doesn't really matter.

[400bird]

Even the base 6.2L from a c6 vette would be good, but you have to use a different trans because the vette uses a transaxle.

I was going to recommend the 6.0 LS2 from the GTO. Should be easier to find than an ls1 f-body.

Next step would be lq or something from a truck. But your stuck with an auto...

[JimM]

Anything from a vette first choice.

LQ9 second. Note: LQ9 is a truck engine, and someone needs to be paying attention, closely, to be sure you're not getting a standard 5.3 or 6.0.

LQ9's are in Escalades, silverado SS, Trailblazer SS, and perhaps a few others. If you do a search you will find what code to look for on the VIN. Older LQ9's are 345 HP, newer ones are 400.

[BA.]

thats good info right there Jim.

will he be able to buy the appropriate flywheel from GM to mate with his 6spd tranny, assuming the 'Auto' one is not correct?

also,.....with a motor from an auto trans, does the crank have/need anything done to mount up the (expected) new flywheel?

[ace's68]

Originally Posted by JimM

Anything from a vette first choice.

LQ9 second. Note: LQ9 is a truck engine, and someone needs to be paying attention, closely, to be sure you're not getting a standard 5.3 or 6.0.

LQ9's are in Escalades, silverado SS, Trailblazer SS, and perhaps a few others. If you do a search you will find what code to look for on the VIN. Older LQ9's are 345 HP, newer ones are 400.

I'm really certain the SS not the base V8 trailblazer uses the LS2...
Engine Order Code

LS2
Engine Type

Gas V8
Displacement

6.0L/366"
Fuel System

SFI
SAE Net Horsepower @ RPM

390 @ 6000
SAE Net Torque @ RPM

400 @ 4000

[RetroLSX]

The LS2 from the trailblazer has some down sides. It runs the truck front accessories, truck oil pan and still pull close to the same price. The new bad boys are the LY6 (LQ4 replacement) or the L92(the LQ9 replacement) for 07 up. These are VVT motors that make killer power out of the box. the L92 makes 535 HP and the LY6 is good for 480 with just a cam and a MAST harness. Both run the L92/LS3 heads and the L92 is a all aluminum 6.2L engine. I can get these pullouts for a great price and even pair them with the 4L65 over the 6 speed autos for fitment and tune ability reasons. The new 6 speed autos have limited aftermarket are bulky and offer minimal better final drive ratio. The other trick I offer is relocation brackets for the front accessories to retain the original GM components only relocate them for better fitment.

[blackl78]

[QUOTE=BA.;13will he be able to buy the appropriate flywheel from GM to mate with his 6spd tranny, assuming the 'Auto' one is not correct?

also,.....with a motor from an auto trans, does the crank have/need anything done to mount up the (expected) new flywheel?[/QUOTE]

Great question Alan...Can some one shed some light on this? I do have my 6-speed allready.